Happy New BlogHer Year!

"Be fun and don't be scared to kick ass." - Esra'a Al Shafei, Mideast Youth, Saturday Morning Keynote, BlogHer '10

Coming into this year's BlogHer conference, I couldn't help thinking how much can happen in a year. My years are always so different, and I always feel like such a different person - Is it like this for anyone else? Last year at this time, I was laid off, but financially OK. And I was on top of my world: I had a directing gig, and I was in love.

By the end of that calendar year, not only had all of that gone thud, but I was also dealing with an odd and pretty serious bout of introversion and social anxiety - a first (and hopefully a last) in this life, let me tell you. The end of 2009 and the first half of 2010 will always be a dark time in my memory. And it occurs to me that it is essentially a period of a BlogHer year.

Making today - for me, my first day back from BlogHer and also my eight-year anniversary in Los Angeles - the first day of a *New* BlogHer Year. Happy New BlogHer Year!

Now, I love New Year's resolutions, and this is the perfect time, because I've been making some major changes in myself and my life. I'm pretty happy about them, and I'm totally stealing my New BlogHer Year resolution from BlogHer '10 International Activist Scholarship Winner Esra'a Al Shafei, who completely rocks and who said the quote that opens this post:

"Be fun and don't be scared to kick ass."

How great is that? No matter what you're doing, clearly these are excellent words to live by. Here's me and Julie Power working on both of those in the Aquaphor (great for tattoos, btw) booth:

Julie posted a great roundup of the community keynote, too.

Which brings me to my Top Ten Things I Loved At BlogHer '10:

1. Being in the community keynote was SO great, and I was so humbled to be included in such an amazing group of bloggers. Within that experience, my favorite part was sitting backstage reading each other's posts because we couldn't hear each other on stage from back there. I was so thankful that my friend Becca and her boyfriend Cory could attend, and I was beyond honored to read between fellow geeky/nerdy bloggers Liz Henry and Sarah Kimmel. Here's Sarah and I in our matching Gap jackets, although thankfully I didn't wear mine for the keynote so we weren't twins on stage:
2. The Nintendo dinner hosted by Brand About Town featured a ride through New York via rickshaw, with all the drivers dressed as Mario. As we passed a group of children in Central Park, they cried out, with put-on Italian accents, "Mario! Mario!" ADORABLE. Here I am with Average Jane:
3. Speaking of Average Jane, she was on one of my favorite panels of the conference, "Little Fish in a Big Pond - Understanding, Accepting and Loving Your Small Blog" with Nora and Catherine. And generally speaking, every panel I attended this year was really good.
4. Every single person who told me they liked my hair, which includes Jessica Kirkwood and Terri Holley. I've become extremely self-conscious of late about my hair, and so I really, really value hearing from people who appreciate my look.
5. The Saturday morning keynote with the International Activist Blogger Scholarship Recipients. So inspiring and also the kind of thing that really puts life into perspective.
6. Dancing for hours at Sparklecorn, and yes, CheeseburgHer, although I did not partake of the meat. Also, at Sparklecorn I learned an important party lesson: If you start a conga line with cardboard Obama, you're going to have to make a lot of stops for love.
7. Getting a copy of my friend Suzanne Reisman's book, Off the Beaten (Subway) Track: New York City's Best Unusual Attractions, and having her sign it for my Aunt and Uncle who I visited with the next day. Suzanne also picked our spot for Saturday night dinner, Indian vegetarian restaurant Vatan, which was superfun.
8. Speaking of food... The conference food at the Hilton New York was wonderful. Lots of vegetarian options, and eggs and oatmeal in the morning.
9. The job lab and the 7 Learning Styles quiz from the University of Phoenix. You got to take the quiz on an iPad, which rocked (covet). I loved the design of the room and the accompanying materials, which included a bookmark for each learning style. As people took the test, they projected a summary of conference attendees' learning styles. I tied as logical and verbal, which I thought was interesting as I've really been working on my verbal skills in the past few years.
10. Running into Elisa, Lisa, and Jory, all together with time for a pic. They are such an inspiration to me.

And, of course, seeing and spending time with many of my favorite bloggers is the best part of all. Here's a shot from breakfast with SoCal Mom and Zandria:

I hung out with so many cool peeps and had such a great conference! Check out my full BlogHer '10 Flickr set, which will eventually feature tags and captions. You know, it took a few years before I started taking a day off after BlogHer, but even that isn't enough time for all the follow-up!

What were some of your favorite parts of BlogHer '10? It's gotten so big! I know peeps did all sorts of things I missed.

San Diego in 2011, baby! This blogger is DRIVING next year, WOOHOO!

Full disclosure: I am a Nintendo Brand Enthusiast, and I was given clothes from Gap before BlogHer.

Comments

[Laura Lohr]

I like your idea of a "New BlogHer Year." I have to admit I did not like 2009. It was sort of a jerk.

I think I met you at the breakfast when that picture was taken.

It was great to meet you. Cannot wait for BlogHer SoCal.

[cagey]

Yes - it IS like a New Year. I have always used BlogHer as my personal "state of the union" and I always come refreshed and ready to start anew.

Confession: I was burning with jealousy that you got to ride in a pedi-cab driven by Mario. Damn, I wish I had at least *seen* that sight. Mario is somewhat of a demi-God around there here parts - if Mario sayeth, I can get my kid to do just about anything (hey, cut me some slack. Jesus just wasn't cutting it.) I can't wait to show my kid that Celeste (his most favorite person) has the ear of his Master. I will wield this new power responsibly. Promise.

The thing about your hair cracked me up, because right off I noticed your hair, too! Did I tell you? I should have, because really, your hair looked fabulous!

[Florinda]

Happy New BlogHer Year to you too! It was great to see you at breakfast on Saturday, and thanks for coming to my panel :-).

I was actually thinking I might not go to BlogHer next year...until they announced it would be in San Diego! And it's two weeks after Comic-Con. Maybe I should just stay down there...

My favorite parts of BlogHer'10? The sessions I went to, particularly the keynotes (you did great, BTW!). Oh, and and the bookstore-shopping excursion downtown that my roommate and I made on Saturday afternoon :-D.

[lizriz]

Laura - So great to meet you!  :)

[lizriz]

Cagey - Personal "state of the union", I love that!  And yes, I don't get to do many of the special invite things at BlogHer, but I am superblessed to get to go to the Nintendo dinner.

And my hair, my hair... It's the kind of thing where I live with it, so sometimes I forget it's noticeable or just have a hard time believing it's a thing - But it is, it seems.  Thank you so much for your kind words about it!

[lizriz]

Florinda - Yes, having BlogHer in my backyard certainly makes it extra sure that I'll be there again! So great seeing you, going to your panel, and I'm SO glad you enjoyed the community keynote!

[Terri Holley]

What a great recap! Your hair rocks!

[HeyJK]

Just seeing this now, but the hair DOES rock!

[lizriz]

Terri & HeyJK - MANY THANKS! :D